Last week while Roger was
out wrestling kangaroos, we covered the basics of the Brush tool. Today we are going to go a bit deeper and
really look at what makes the tool so useful. Starting from where we left off last week, open the Brush tool (B) from the
tool bar, and then click on the little gear to open the brush manager. In addition to the default brushes you see,
there is a whole listing of other choices available in the bottom section of
the panel.

You can either append or add them to the ones
already displayed or, you can replace the current set entirely with the new
set, like these Special Effect Brushes.
To return to the default settings, just click on the Reset Brushes
option.

Now comes the magic. All of the specialized panels are found in
the drop down menu under Windows.
Opening the Brush Panel (F5) gives you a huge menu of variables which
can be customized for each brush.

Each of the subpanels opens to reveal specific
controls. Take for example Scatter. When scatter is set at Zero, the default
setting, your brush acts just like well, a regular brush.

When you adjust the scatter settings, the brush
tip can move in a random pattern as shown in the preview window of the panel

The effects can certainly be combined; for
example if you select fall themed foreground and background colors, adjust both
scatter, size and color dynamics, and then choose one of the leaf shaped
brushes…, you can create a dynamic border or graphic effect.

Next time we are going to discuss creating and
saving your own custom brushes as well as look at how using a graphics tablet
adds even more awesomeness.